Search

So, what happened to me that I’ve alluded to in several different places?

Well…I got bit by a dog.

On Sunday night, my roommate accidentally left the baby gate dividing the upstairs (where I live) and the downstairs (where she lives) open. Not usually an issue, so I do the same routine I always do and call my dog upstairs.

Now, I didn’t see the fight start, so I can’t say for certain what caused it, but our dogs started fighting. Her dog tends to be a little standoffish, so when my dog gets too close or tries to play, he snaps. This has led to a couple low-key fights already.

This time, however, I think it was the perfect storm for a larger fight. My dog had an ear infection, I was extremely stressed, her other dog was in heat, and put all of that in a cramped space and you have a dog fight.

I know better, but because I couldn’t get through the door to get behind my dog, I had to try from the front end. I went to smack my dog from the side, and when they turned, I ripped my hand back to get it out of the way, but it was too late.

I, actually, think I got some molar action in.

I suffered 5 lacerations, one of which spanned the entire width of my finger, and broken bone. I have stitches in 4, and my ring and middle finger are bandaged up and will be for the next few weeks. Definitely, the most pain I’ve ever been in.

So…completely my fault, and the dogs are fine. What a terrible start to the week, huh?

I just discovered this week that I needed to ALSO replace my coolant recovery tank in my car. Just before I was prepared to buy the part and put it in myself (so that I didn’t have to pay an expensive mechanic), I landed myself in the ER with a hand injury requiring stitches and a few trips to orthopedics because I broke a finger, too. Now, the money I had to put into trying to fix part of my car is all going to medical bills.

Again, the car takes a back seat to other expenses.

Anything you can give will help, no matter how small and insignificant it may be to you. If you can’t give, please share so that I might be able to fulfill my need of a reliable car.

It never seems to fail – no matter how hard I try trips home tend to be dramatic.

Last time I visited home, I slept in my car after being cornered by my sister’s dog, who for some reason seems to be the only dog in the entire world that hates me. Of course, I bring my dog with me, so we keep them separate.

This time when I went home, my sister’s dog just happened to be only about a week shy of being full-term pregnant. My mom also decided we should let the dogs play. Never mind that I work in animal behavior…no one seems to think I have any clue about what I’m doing when it comes to dogs.

So against my better judgment, I decide its okay to introduce the dogs, and all was well enough. My mom decided to take them into the living room, and for whatever reason I didn’t think to follow (probably because I was talking to Dad).

Only a few short moments later, I hear a fight break out. Instinct kicks in and I tear out of my mom’s room, through the kitchen and into the living room where a full-blown dog fight has broken out. My mom was trying to get in the middle of the dogs meanwhile my nephew was pushing her out of the way (literally), and everyone else just decided it was okay to watch.

Jazz, being a pretty good dog, tried to stop fighting once I started yelling, but her dog wouldn’t let up. Amidst everyone telling me not to, I reached in and picked up my dog to remove him from the situation, but because everyone else thought it was better to just watch, her dog grabbed hold of Jazz again.

Once again, no one seems to think I have any clue what I’m doing, because they kept telling me to stop.

Which is when I got fed up and yelled at them that I know what I’m doing and to grab Ivy’s back legs. Like I said, once I grabbed Jazz’s butt he completely stopped. Unfortunately, even once they grabbed my sister’s dog, she wouldn’t let go of my dog’s neck, so we had to pry her off.

And in all of an instant, I look down and see blood on Jazz’s head and splattered all over the floor, so I pick my dog up and take him into my old bedroom. His neck was soaked and I was expecting the worst after the hold the other dog had on him.

Lo and behold…I got a bloody nose even before I reached the dogs and bled all over the place. Had I walked out of my room and into the street, you would think I got a real good beating – blood all over both arms, my shirt, my neck, smeared on my faces and dripping down my lip. Jazz’s neck was soaked only with doggie saliva.

As it turns out, both dogs were largely unscathed. Apparently, the quick exertion mixed with the much drier air and probably dehydration gave me a nose bleed when I got up and ran, which I thought was a runny nose. It bled and bled and bled, and even into the next day I was still getting blood from it. Everyone was freaked out by the amount of blood in the living room before they realized it was just my nose.

I still don’t know what everyone would have done had I not been there. And I can’t believe my nephew pushed my mom out of the way twice.

This weekend I was finally able to visit my father since the news of hiscancer. I was nervous at first, and then frustrated, but I’m really glad I went because even though the news hasn’t changed and progress hasn’t really been made, I have acquired some peace of mind.

The peace of mind came from two things. Two very simple things.

The first thing was something I’ve been contemplating since we found out. Should I or shouldn’t I move back to be with my family? My mom tells me just as frequently as I tell her that I should move back. While it definitely would have some perks, I find it hard to abandon my job and my home here to move back home where I may not find a job in my field. I decided that I would ask my dad, and whatever he said I would do. So I did. I’ll not be moving back. He said that there wasn’t anything I could do, and he loves me of course, but he also is pretty level-headed. And its true. I did spend every second I could with my dad on Thursday, but he was only awake for about 8 hours, so while me being there was nice it isn’t like he is spending 16 hours awake alone.

The second thing, which is probably more comforting, is what he said to me this morning before he left for a doctors appointment.

I’ll come up to see you soon. We’ll get this thing shrunken and I’ll come up. I’m going to fight this. I’m a fighter, Annie.

To see that fight still left in my dad was everything I could have asked for. Even if the treatment renders him unable to actually visit me, knowing that he hasn’t given up and wants to win his battle with cancer makes it all okay. And even if we all feel completely defeated right now, he gives me hope.

It’s no news that I’m an introvert. I mean, come on, I spend hours of my life alone, on my computer, writing. This can’t be a surprise.

So, to continue with yesterday’s dating theme, I was reading through some stuff on being an introvert and how to deal with us. A lot of the information hits the mark – like how you should not constantly ask us what’s wrong because we are quiet – but I found one little blurp in an article that really hit close to home.

It was about conflict.

[…] you might find yourself revisiting an argument from three days ago as if it were still fresh. It IS fresh – to an introvert.

I feel a little more at peace knowing that I’m not the only one who this is true for. I don’t mean to bring up an argument days later, but to me, the time in between has been spent cultivating my ideas about whatever it is I am arguing about, figuring out the most logical way to deal with the situation, and how to go about discussing it without getting mean.

Really, when I bring it up again, it’s to actually discuss the problem, come to a solution, and be happy with that solution.

And I’m a firm believer in not arguing while angry. So sue me. Here is the original, full text from the website (on the subject of conflict):

Conflict

Pros: Chances are that an introvert’s response to conflict, while slow in coming, will be a thoughtful one.

Cons: If you need to work out something right away, good luck. Introverts tend to need time for processing information before responding, so you might find yourself revisiting an argument from three days ago as if it were still fresh. It IS fresh — to an introvert.

Red Flag: Healthy arguments play a natural part in any relationship, but they require gaining closure of some sort for both parties. If you’re not careful and insistent on settling conflicts, nothing ever gets resolved… which can lead to resentment and distrust

There are times and places for everything. Sometimes we forget this, simply because of the technology that keeps us in constant communication with one another. We especially throw these ideas aside when we are emotional. Its usually considered unacceptable to call your significant other at work to yell at them, simply because they are working.

If you are mad at your significant other, would you call to yell at them on their lunch hour?